South Fort Collins Sanitation District & Fort Collins-Loveland Water District Announce Separation

Initiated by the SFCSD, anticipated separation is planned for Q1 2023 after nearly 60 years with shared operations

The South Fort Collins Sanitation District (SFCSD) and Fort Collins-Loveland Water District (FCLWD) announced recently that they are working on mutually agreeable changes to their facilities and management sharing agreement at the request of the SFCSD to separate operations and become two fully independent districts. The anticipated separation is planned to be completed by the end of 2023.

This parting comes after an official vote in June during a SFCSD board meeting when the board appointed their own district manager and took action to properly align staff to support the two entities.

Over the coming months, FCLWD will continue to provide administrative services per the current agreement until the transition date is reached. Both districts are actively collaborating to support the objective of separate and independent operation while continuing to provide high-quality, secure, reliable, and affordable water and wastewater reclamation services.

The FCLWD and SFCSD have had a close partnership and shared operations, management, and administrative staff for nearly 60 years. As both districts have grown, regulatory requirements have advanced requiring specialization and individual focus for water distribution and wastewater reclamation services. The SFCSD board of directors has determined it to be in the best interest of their customers to separate and focus solely on their mission to protect the environment while providing wastewater reclamation services to customers at a high value.

“Growth in both the Fort Collins-Loveland Water District and South Fort Collins Sanitation District has created logical differences that make it appropriate to be administered by two separate boards supported by two separate staff organizations,” said Jim Borland, FCLWD board of directors’ chairman since 1982.

“Not every issue in business is scalable, and the two Districts reached a growth point where our historic shared operations structure doesn’t scale moving forward.”

The FCLWD was formed in 1961 to address an immediate need for water in the area between Fort Collins and Loveland. As the population within the FCLWD grew, the need for sanitary sewer service emerged and, as a result, the SFCSD was formed in 1964. While the districts were young and relatively small, there were benefits to sharing operations, management, and administrative staff.

“Over the last several years, the SFCSD has identified a growing trend for combined special districts to develop independent organizations due to increasing federal, state, and local regulations, population growth, and demand for staff,” Gary Young said, SFCSD board of directors chairman. “After careful consideration, we presented the request to the FCLWD and the motion was approved through an SFCSD board of directors vote this summer to separate.”

The FCLWD and SFCSD intend to manage the separation with as little impact as possible to customers. However, customers can expect account management processes related to their sewer district account to change in 2023. In the long term, both districts’ ability to maintain a cost-efficient operation for customers will be simpler and more achievable as independently operating districts.

“The Fort Collins-Loveland Water District and South Fort Collins Sanitation District have been close partners for nearly 60 years,” Borland said. “We will continue to maintain that strong relationship and collaborate closely to provide customers, many of whom are shared, the same quality of water and wastewater services as we always have.”

For more information about the FCLWD and SFCSD, visit fclwd.com/sfcsd-independence.

Loveland Water District & South Fort Collins Sanitation District The Fort Collins – Loveland Water and South Fort Collins Sanitation Districts have provided water and wastewater services to businesses and citizens since 1961. The Districts serve approximately 50,000 people in an area that encompasses approximately 60 square miles in part of Fort Collins, Loveland, Timnath, Windsor, and Larimer County. Governed by separately elected boards of directors, the Districts provide the full spectrum of high-quality and dependable water treatment and delivery as well as wastewater treatment and water reclamation services. For additional information about the Districts, their services, and projects visit www.fclwd.com.